


The Thing In The Woods

by Andian



Category: Fairy Tales & Related Fandoms
Genre: Fairy Tale Retellings, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-23
Updated: 2014-10-23
Packaged: 2018-02-22 08:29:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2501255
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Andian/pseuds/Andian
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There are stories they tell about the thing that hides in the woods.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Thing In The Woods

**Author's Note:**

  * For [a_la_grecque](https://archiveofourown.org/users/a_la_grecque/gifts).



Once upon a time there was forest, deep and dark and dangerous. The people of the village next to the forest did not dare to ever enter it, fearful of what might lurk inside the darkness between the trees. There were stories of a thing in the woods with teeth as big as a man's arm, with eyes that would glow like ember, burning you on sight, and with claws so sharp they could cut in half anything, even the hardest of weapons.

The people of the village would whisper about those things late at night, huddling in front of fires that were not enough to keep the cold from sneaking inside them, slowly and careful with every word until they would suddenly shiver violently and quickly look behind their backs, eyes wide with fear, to make sure that the thing in the wood had not come for them. Those who grew up in the village grew up with those stories and with the fear that they brought, as did one little girl. And as little girls do, as much as the stories would scare her she could never hear enough of them either.

“Grandmother,” she'd beg, at those nights when clouds made it impossible to see the edges of the forest, stretching closely to their little house “Tell me about the woods.” And as grandmothers do, her grandmother eventually gave in to her begging.  
“You see,” her grandmother would begin, “There is a clearing in the woods. That's where they go to, you know.” The little girl did not know, but she did not want to interrupt the story to ask either. So she just kept listening. “Some go too early, like your father. Some take a bit too long, like me.” Her grandmother would smile then. “I'll go too at one point.” “But why do you have to go, Grandmother?” the little girl asked since of all the things that stories were worth interrupting for, her grandmother going away was one of the most important. But her grandmother did not explain. Instead she smiled. “Oh my dear, you're still so young. You have still have time before you need to know,” and the little girl did not agree but she had come to know that it would be fruitless to beg her grandmother for an answer at this point of the story.

“Grandmother,” she so said instead “what about the thing in the woods?” At night the little girl would sometimes lie awake and imagine the thing coming for her. _Click-clack_ it would scratch on the wooden floor, like the knife of her mother on a breadboard. _Puff-huff_ would its breath go, smelling as rotten as a cesspit. And then, then it would be standing next to her bed and it would watch her with eyes so huge as to better see her fear, and with paws so large as to better seize her with and a mouth so big as to better eat...

“Rubbish!” The little girl flinched. “Rubbish.” her grandmother repeated, not as loud as before, but still as angry. “Don't listen to those stories. They are no good. They are no good for anyone.” “But the people in the village say that...” “What do they know?!” her grandmother interrupted and her golden eyes, usually so soft and friendly, glinted with a cold anger. “What does anyone of them know!” She calmed down a bit and as she saw the fear in the eyes of the little girl she reached out and hugged her closely. “Oh my dear, don't be afraid. I'm just a foolish old woman. Just promise me one thing,” and she pulled back and looked at the little girl solemnly. “The things they say say in the village about what lives in the woods. Do not listen to them. Just remember the clearing when I'm gone. And don't be sad. We all have to go at one point or another.” And the little girl nodded, for there are some things in the world that are important to remember and this seemed like one of them.

 

The next day the mother of the little girl sent her out to the market. She was to return as quickly as possible, but on the way she saw some flowers growing along the way on the other side of a small river. “What pretty flowers,” a part inside of her thought. “You should collect some.” another part suggested. The little girl hesitated for her mother had been very strict about staying on the way but then she heard the birds singing and saw how pretty the flowers looked in the sunlight and decided, as little girls do, that a few moments to pick some flowers could not hurt.

“Grandmother will like them.” she thought. “She had been awfully sad when I left in the morning, some flowers will please her.” Careful as not to stain her hood, that was as white and clean as the daisies growing at the river, she made her way across and started collecting flowers.  
Quickly she became lost in her task, playing a game of trying to pick up the prettiest flowers she could find, abandoning those she had plucked before on her way. Without her noticing the river and the way parted and while one was leading back to her mother and her grandmother the river lead her closer and closer to the woods. As the sun suddenly seemed to disappear above her she looked up, surprised and startled to suddenly see the crowns of trees above her. Stumbling back she quickly made her way out of the forest, stopping a few feet away from the trees. Staring inside the darkness between the trees she told herself that she should turn around and go. Her mother had warned her to never wander off into the forest, not alone or even with any of the other children of the village

But one part of her, easy to ignore at the safety of home but always lurking in the back of her head, had always wondered. Wondered about the woods. Wondered about the clearing her grandmother had told her about. Wondered if she would see her father again there.  
She turned around a bit, looking behind her where she could see the village in the distance. “I'll just go in a bit,” she told herself. “I'll just go in a bit and see if I can find the clearing and father. I can still see the village. It won't be dangerous.” Carefully she put down the bundle of flowers she had collected and stepped forwards into the woods.

Inside of them it suddenly seemed like every sound had been swallowed. The only thing the little girl could hear was the sound of her footsteps as she slowly made her way deeper into the woods. “Just a few steps more,” she thought to herself to reassure the fear that had suddenly started rising inside of her. “Just a few steps more. The clearing surely will be around here somewhere.” Deeper and deeper she walked and bigger and bigger her fear grew, of the silence and darkness around here until she could not stand it any longer. Turning around she started walking back towards where she thought the end of the forest, walking quicker and quicker until she was running.

But the forest did not end. There were only more trees. She ran until her legs could not carry her longer, until she suddenly noticed that not even a spot of sunlight was fighting its way through the thick covert of trees anymore and she stumbled suddenly over a root and feel down. Tears were running over her face as she realized that she had become lost inside the woods and night had began.

Huddling under a tree she hugged her knees and stared fearfully into the darkness of the woods around her. “I just have to wait till morning,” she thought, trying to calm herself. “Then I'll find my way out here. Or someone will find. I'm sure, someone will come for me.” As she thought this, she suddenly heard a sound next to her like somebody had stepped on a branch. Her head snapped up as she looked around, trying to find out where the sound had come from. It was hard to make something out in the darkness and for a moment she thought, hoped, that it had just been her mind playing tricks on her head. Then she saw movement in the leaves and she jumped to her feet, fear making her forget her previous exhaustion.

Once more she started running, this time not caring if she was running towards the end of the forest as long as she got away from whatever she could hear moving behind her, making its way through bushes, following her every step. She stumbled once more, grasped a branch as not to fall which broke, scratching her arm. She paid no mind to it, still aware of the thing behind her. But slowly she could also feel her strength leaving her, her wild dash already slowing down, her footing becoming more and more unsure. Her arm was hurting and she had tears in her eyes again, blurring the way in front of her while the noises behind her grew louder and louder. Suddenly though she saw something shining through the trees, bright and completely different from the darkness around her and a wild hope came over her. “It is the end of the forest! I'll just have to get out! It won't follow me there!” and the hope of those thoughts made her feet run quicker one last time and as she felt the thing behind her, a looming shadow of mass and danger, getting closer and closer she ran for her life towards the light. Out of the corner of her eyes, she something sparkling, something glittering, even in the darkness of the forest and for a moment she thought it were teeth ready to bury inside her and she was not running fast enough, she was too slow, the light too far way, the beast too close and she was lost, lost, _lost..._

And suddenly light. She stumbled, fell down, painting heavily as her eyes trying to adjust to the sudden brightness of the moonshine and she let a shaky laugh. She was save, save from the thing, save from everything and after she had caught her breath she would make her way home to her mother and her grandmother. She looked up, trying to see if she could see the village from her current spot but she only saw trees. Frowning she looked them, thinking that she had come out of the forest and she could not remember turning towards it again. A sudden feeling of cold dread started spreading through her body as she slowly turned around. Behind her were also trees. As were left and right to hear. The moonlighted field she had ran to was small and surrounded by trees and with a shock she realized that she found the clearing.

Before she could even begin to form another thought she heard a sound. Looking straight ahead she saw something coming out from under the trees.

Click-clack and puff-huff and a mouth so big and when she did not look at it, maybe it would just go away, maybe she'd wake just wake up in her bed in her house with her mother and grandmother, maybe then nothing of this would be real, so she closed her eyes and waited for what would come.

She could hear it making its way over to her, grass rustling under its weights, felt her herself tensing more and more as she waited for sharp pain and with every second the thing came closer her heart pounded louder until she thought it would explode inside of her.

Then the sound of rustling stopped and she could feel the thing next to her and through the fear a sudden calmness came over her, sudden and wonderful, worrisome perhaps but better than the fear and with the sudden peace of somebody who knew that they were going to die she opened her eyes to look at the thing in the woods, equally stupid and brave.

As little girls do.

She was meet with eyes that were not ember and did not burn her but instead with eyes that were soft and friendly and _golden_ and the calmness gave way for confusion as she stared at the thing while the thing stared back at her with eyes that she had know since she her birth.  
She opened her mouth, unsure if she should scream or say something but then the thing made an impatient gesture with its head, and walked away from her. Confused she looked after it as it stopped, before it made her way back to her, still no sight that it would try to open its mouth as wide as it could to devour her whole. Again it walked for a bit, moving its head towards a certain spot between the trees and suddenly she realized that she should follow it.

Slowly she stood up, her knees shaking. She was hurt and exhausted and still confused by those golden eyes and without really knowing why she started following the thing in the woods. The next few hours were a blur of walking through the forest that always looked exactly the same, trying not to stumble with exhaustion, following the thing that gently steered her into seemingly random directions or let her brace herself on it when she felt like her legs would no longer carry her any longer until there was suddenly brightness and light again and the little girl stumbled out of the forest, almost stepping on the flowers that she left behind.

In front of her she could see the village and she had never in her entire life felt so happy about seeing it. Turning around she saw that the thing had not come out from underneath the trees to follow her and they looked at each other, the little girl staring into the golden eyes of the thing in the woods that had saved her and guided her out of the woods instead of eating her.

“Thank you,” she said and on a sudden hunch she picked up the flowers she had collected and stepped a bit towards the woods. She laid them down, close enough that the thing could reach them without having to leave the cover of the trees. “My grandmother told me that the villagers were telling bad things about you. I'll tell her that she was right.” At this the thing slowly lowered its head, before picking up the flowers carefully in its mouth. For a brief moment the two of them stared at each again and the little girl thought that it did not look terrifying at all, not with the flowers, not with eyes as golden as those of her grandmother and she smiled.

Then the ears of the wolf suddenly twitched and a moment latter she could her the sound too, somebody coming up from the village and as she looked over her back at the direction of the sound she heard a noise behind her and as she turned back she was alone.

She waited for it to return, however only for a few moments, then she turned around and started walking towards the sound. It was a group of men from the village with torches and weapons who had been sent to look for her by her mother. One half of the men started scolding her as soon as they saw her, the other half was too glad to find her alive without having to go into the forest. One of the man patched up her arm and out of the forest she could see that the part of her hood that had been covered by her arm had been colored a deep, dark red and she thought that it was a very pretty color for a hood. “We will take you back to your mother now,” the man who had patched her up said. She nodded, suddenly more than eager to go back home. “I want home,” she said. “I want to see my mother and my grandmother.” There was silence for a moment, the men looking at each other weirdly. “We will do that,” one of them then said quickly, picking her up. “Just wait a bit.” Being carried the exhaustion finally took its tool and the little girl feel asleep on the way.

When she woke up she was in her bed her mother sitting next, holding her hand. She looked pale, even in the warm shine of the fire but when she noticed that the little girl was awake she smiled. “Oh my dear girl, don't you ever, ever do that again!” she cried out, pulling her into her arms. The little girls hugged back as tight as she could. “I won't, I promise. Mother, you won't believe what happened! I got to tell grandmother about it, where is she?” She could feel her mothers arms suddenly weakening.

Confused she looked around, suddenly aware that she could not see her grandmother anywhere in the room. “Where's grandmother?” she asked her mother. Her mother let go of her, putting her hand on the little girl's shoulder. “Do you … do you remember what your grandmother told you? About the clearing? Where you father went? Where she … where she would go too?” The little girl nodded, not understanding what her mother was talking about. Naturally she remembered the clearing, she had just been there. “Yes, but where is grandmother?” Her mother's hand shook and the little girl saw that she was crying. “She's gone my dear. She went to the clearing. Where your father did go. They are together now. It... it didn't hurt.” With that she hugged the little girl again and the little girl felt a wave sadness rushing through her, mixing with confusion.

Over the shoulder of her mother she could see the forest, large and dark and dangerous filled with things that she should fear as little girls should fear what hides in the woods but that she did not fear it at all but rather she suddenly remembered the clearing and the moonlight on the grass and the sound as she walked through the trees and suddenly she felt a longing for it, weird and strong and ruthless and wild.

As wolves do.


End file.
